It’s hard to believe but the Middlesbrough players will report back for pre-season training in less than a fortnight.

Four weeks have passed since Boro’s aggregate play-off loss to Aston Villa.

And, to outsiders at least, very little appears to have changed. That’s not unusual, few clubs conduct much, if any, of their transfer business in June. But with the summer window closing three weeks early this year, Tony Pulis will want to get his summer reshuffle sorted sooner rather than later. So what are the most pressing issues facing the Boro boss as he prepares for pre-season? Philip Tallentire takes a look.

Resolve the Gibson/Traore situations

It would be wonderful to think Boro could hold onto Ben Gibson and Adama Traore but, in all likelihood they’ll lose at least one, if not both.

Gibson, at this stage, looks the more likely of the two to leave. Having stayed loyal following relegation, he’ll be keen to get back into the top flight and stake a claim for another England call-up.

And there’ll be no shortage of takers.

His departure would leave a big hole in the backline that would have to be plugged. Following his England exploits, Dael Fry will be hoping for more first team action next season. But Pulis may also want an experienced replacement for Gibson, who is one of the leaders on the pitch and in the dressing room.

Ben Gibson and Adama Traore

What the manager will also want is that transfer, and Traore’s future, resolving as soon as possible.

Rightly, the club will want the best price possible before sanctioning a sale, but they must also factor in the timescale.

Pulis can ill afford to lose either them in the final week of the window, leaving little or no time to sign replacements.

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Who’ll be the reserve keeper?

Dimi Konstantopoulos watched every single Championship game last season from the Boro bench.

He may well do the same thing in 2018/19.

Fitness permitting, Darren Randolph is the undisputed No1 and that’s unlikely to change. But Pulis also has to decide who’ll be the Irishman’s understudy.

Konstantopoulos would be happy to fulfil that role once again. He’ll be 40 in November and is coming to the end of his career. Settled in the North-east, he’s not itching to move for first team football.

Now 25, he’s not a raw rookie any more and will be desperate to play regular football for the team he supported as a lad.

Loan deals have given him valuable experience but the time is coming where it’s make or break at Boro.

Will he be satisfied to be Randolph’s No2? Ripley won’t develop as a keeper sitting on a subs’ bench, that’s for sure.

But, if he is on the bench and Randolph suffers a long-term injury, Ripley could find himself the Boro No1. It’s a tough call for him to make.

Much will depend on what Pulis wants to do. Konstantopoulos has never let Middlesbrough down but is the manager happy to have a deputy keeper who hasn’t played a first team league fixture since May 2016? Time will tell.

Fabio and Johnson to stay or go?

There are several players currently on the books that are expected to move on.

After a season with Real Betis, Antonio Barragan is due back with Boro but no doubt he’ll he leaving as soon as an acceptable deal can be arranged.

Fabio is another player who could be on the move.

He has in the past suffered from bouts of homesickness and was replaced in the team last season by George Friend.

He did make several appearances from the bench in the final weeks of the season.

Boro have activated the one year clause on his contract and it’s the case that there’s not a great deal of cover at left back.

But zero starts under Pulis suggests he’s not the manager’s kind of player.

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Who goes out on loan?

Tony Pulis will have to decide which of his young players is worth a place in the first team squad and which individuals can go back out on loan or be sold.

It’s hard to see where up and coming talents like Lewis Wing, Marcus Tavernier, George Miller and Callum Cooke will fit into the first team squad next season if only because there is so much competition for the places they would hope to occupy.

Those players would probably benefit from spending most of pre-season training with the first team squad and, perhaps, playing in a friendly or two and then joining a Championship or League One club on a season-long loan where they can hopefully play another campaign of first team football.

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As things stand, it looks like Braithwaite will be sold , though he’s currently on World Cup duty with Denmark. A good tournament could increase his value, making it possible for Boro to get their money back.

Because he’s on international duty, though, the Dane will be late reporting back for pre-season training and that could delay a move.

However, they will probably have to take a significant financial hit on Fletcher.

There will be no shortage of takers for Bamford or Assombalonga but can Pulis risk selling one or both without first signing next season’s first choice front man? And he’ll want at least one, maybe two of the current strikers to stay as cover.